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and February ? What an impoverished exchequer will 

 ours be, should the day over come, when our teaming 

 forest crown-lands, entirely denuded of timber, cease to 

 offer attraction and investment to the capitalist and to 

 the exporter of timber ? Just imagine the despair of the 

 Canadian peasant, located far from coal deposits and 

 fuel supplies, — in the back ranges of this province, 

 when having sated his insane ardor for cutting down 

 every forest tree without re-planting any, and gained a 

 complete victory over his enemy, the standing, live 

 tree, he is compelled to bid adieu for ever to his plea- 

 sant home, for lack of fuel to heat it ! 



God forbid we should ever see that day ! 



How many thousands of young trees are ruthlessly 

 sacrificed each year, on the national holiday (the 24th 

 June), for its decoration, instead of flags and bunting, 

 on our streets ? Why not spare the lovely maple saplings 

 and put up gay flags only ? I have my doubts whether 

 St. Jean Baptiste ! looks down from above, compla- 

 cently, on this wanton destruction of the fair orna- 

 ments implanted by nature, in this portion of his 

 flourishing northern domain. 



We have viewed trees and forests under their utili- 

 tarian, their commercial aspect, as such claiming the 

 serious attention of the legislator as well as of the 

 patriot ; there is an other point attractive to the 

 lover of trees, shall I call it, a tender, captivating 

 phase, of the very practical, far reaching subject of 

 forestry ; seeing so many ladies present, I think I may, 

 safely count on their powerful support ; women, as if by 

 instinct, devine, love, admire every thing which is grace- 

 ful in nature : the varied plants, the rainbow tints of 

 flowers, the grand trees, to which spring-tide lends a 

 wealth of perfume or of foliage. A tree or a grove, you 

 all know, may not only afford in summer a retreat, 

 cool and shady, a healthy atmosphere to breathe ; to the 

 student, it may recall a striking, memorable incident in 



